Other News

Seattle’s on-again-off-again festival celebrating all things cannabis seems to be on again.

Officials with Seattle Hempfest say they’ve resolved their dispute with the city and the event will be held as scheduled in mid-August at Myrtle Edwards Park. 

Making headlines around the Northwest this morning:

• Did Seattle Police Violate DUI Procedures?
• Reforms at Monroe Prison After Guard's Killing
• Electronic Billboard Fight Brews in Tacoma

DUI Prosecutions in Seattle on Hold

Some drunk driving cases have been suspended by City Attorney Pete Holmes while Seattle Police investigate how its DUI squad handled procedures.

On Monday, SPD admitted it is reviewing allegations procedures in the unit were not properly handled. according to The Seattle Times:

The investigation has forced the department to pull all but one member of its five-member DUI Squad from the street and assign them to desk duties, according to police.

House lawmakers have released their proposed 2011-2013 transportation budget, and it includes less service cuts and a smaller rate hike to Washington's ferry system than Gov. Chris Gregoire's earlier bid.

The House proposal cuts ferry services by $3.1 million, compared to Gregoire's $20 million reduction in her December budget. Gregoire also had proposed a rate hike of 10%. The House proposal puts it at 7.5% in 2011 and 2.5% in 2012.

Happy Spring!  We'll see periods of sunshine and some rain showers today.

Making headlines around the Northwest this morning:

• First Flight for 747-8 
• Afghan War Crimes Photos Released
• Libyan-Americans Monitor Conflict

Sunday for Boeing: "Absolutely Gorgeous"

I caught up with supermodel Christy Turlington Wednesday night as she walked from the Andra Hotel over to the Cinerama Theater for the Seattle screening of her documentary on the global problem of maternal deaths and disabilities caused in childbirth: “No Woman No Cry.”

Turlington met with a number of local luminaries and experts on matters of global health, like the UW’s Chris Murray (who minutes before closed out a major global health meeting. See Horton post below), at a VIP reception sponsored by the World Affairs Council and the Washington Global Health Alliance.

Didn’t have much time, but I asked her two questions:

• Is the increasingly common practice of having celebrities champion causes (like Charlie Sheen going to help Sean Penn’s philanthropic work in Haiti) actually a symptom of our culture’s misplaced values?

• Does the high-profile attention given to maternal health as the cause célèbre of global health send the wrong message — that the primary concern for women is their reproductive ability, as opposed to health overall?

I was somewhat disappointed to discover that she was very friendly, well-spoken and gracious despite my attempt to get her to display the kind of behavior more expected of a supermodel. Here’s an audio clip of me chasing down Christy Turlington on the streets of Seattle.

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How important is a protest sign?  That’s the question we’re asking on the 8th anniversary of the war in Iraq.

Back in 2003,  in the weeks and months leading up to the invasion of Iraq by the U.S. and Coalition forces, millions of peace activists around the globe rallied against war. 

At every protest you saw the same signs-- red, white and blue placards with the words “No Iraq War.”  All of them came from one place, a family run sign shop in Seattle.

Rallies, memorials and interfaith prayer gatherings are scheduled around Puget Sound today and through the weekend, as people gather in support of the victims of last week's earthquake and tsunami in northeast Japan.

Making headlines around the Northwest this morning:

• Lawsuits Blame Top WaMu Execs
• Deeper Cuts for State Ahead
• New Findings in Port Orchard Wal-Mart Shooting

Killinger on FDIC Allegations: "Fiction"

Negligence led to the nation's largest-ever bank failure, claims the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which filed suit against former Washington Mutual leaders Kerry Killinger, David Schneider and Stephen Rotella. The Seattle Times' Sanjay Bhatt reports the FDIC wants: